The ladies are taking charge this year. Cassie, JoJo, Solange, and V V Brown pop out from the pages of V Magazine‘s annual Music Issue. The singers were named “fearless females” by the fashion publication, going glam in the colorful close-ups photographed by Mick Rock. They each spoke out about their upcoming projects.

Cassie on her new sound and image: “In my video we called it ‘giving ’90s supermodel.’ It’s the perfect definition of who I am right now and what I’m going through. People aren’t going to expect me to come out with what I have.”

JoJo on being a voice for her generation: “I love Britney Spears and Madonna and Lady Gaga. I love pop music, those big pop records, but I still want it to feel like my sound. I hope people feel like, ‘Damn, that’s exactly what I’m going through, that’s what I’m thinking but I wasn’t sure how to put it into words.’ I want to sing what people are thinking and feeling. I want it to be the soundtrack to their lives.”

Solange on her new music: “My references for the record were all Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, not just their typical Janet and Prince stuff, but SOS Band and their b-sides with Chaka Khan. At first the songs were really dark because I had a premonition before the record that I was going to die. I was having panic attacks and wiling out.”

V V Brown on her sophomore album Lollipops and Politics: “My second album has a message: it’s about my generation and things going on in the world. But I didn’t want it to come across preachy. I love writing upbeat songs with darker undertones.”